All About Business Disability Insurance: October 2009

The main purpose of business disability insurance is to to replace an employer and employee's income should they be unable to work as a result of either an accident or a sickness. In fact, People tend not to spend a lot of time thinking about the financial devastation that could result from a disabling injury or sickness therefore if disability strikes, the balance between personal earnings and expenses suddenly is upset, and the threat of financial disaster can quickly become a reality.
(Written By Kyle J. Norton)

Business Insurance Costs, Don't Cut Corners
By Carmel Baird Platinum Quality Author

When we go into business for ourselves, either purchase an already existing business or start a business up from scratch, it is usually because we have a flair or it is our trade. That is the part of the business we know very well. There are many areas we will find ourselves not knowing all the ins and outs and an important one of these areas is the business insurance. It is also important not to cut corners with your business insurance costs.

Business insurance for small to medium businesses can be like a minefield but you need to know you have the right cover so that all areas of your business are protected sufficiently. There is insurance for these size businesses called a Business Owners Policy or BOP.

This type of insurance package combines protection for all the main property and liability risks you could face in one package. Of course you can obtain all these covers separately if you wish. The business insurance packages were developed for small to medium sized business that had similar risks. A larger company would normally customize their policies to suit their circumstance.

Business Insurance Packages for small businesses, would include:-

1. Insurance cover for the property, which included the buildings (if you own them, if you are leasing the premises then the owner of the building carries this insurance) and the contents, this includes the fixtures and fittings you have installed to set up your business and you would need to make sure about the stock you have on hand. A business carries basic stock normally, so you would be asked to nominate a value. If you have peak periods, like holiday trading where you carry extra stock, then this is the value you should nominate, as disasters don't pick normal trading times to hit.

2. Business interruption insurance, this covers any loss of income that results from things like fire or other catastrophes disrupting the operation of the business. This could also cover any expense for you having to run your business from temporary premises.

3. Liability protection, this will cover your businesses legal responsibility for any harm caused to anyone by you or your employees during the operation of your business. Things like injury to persons or property caused by defective products or faulty services and installations.

What is not covered by these type of business insurance packages are professional liability, worker's compensation, health or disability insurance and auto insurance. Separate policies are needed to cover these.

When you are in business, having an independent insurance agent or broker can be very beneficial. Getting to know this person and them getting to know you and your needs for your business insurance, will take so much pressure from you and as this is their business to know the insurance field, then they will make sure you have the right coverage. There are areas you may not think of that need cover

You will need to keep your business insurance broker informed regarding any changes to your business, like expanding, downsizing, major purchases, employing more staff or staff reductions or you may change your premises. This will ensure you have the right insurance coverage to suit your needs.

Ask about higher deductibles. You could save on your insurance premiums by electing to pay higher deductibles, the higher this figure is, the less you pay. Depending on your circumstances this could be false economy, so make sure you understand what your broker tells you about this area of a policy.

There may be other ways to reduce your premiums too, so follow your insurer's recommendations for workplace safety and disaster preparations.

The important thing is to get the right business insurance at the right price and for the right coverage so you have all the protection you need.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carmel_Baird

What to Look For When Comparing Disability Insurance Company Ratings
By David Wilkenson Platinum Quality Author

Rating disability insurance companies is important to ensure that you are only investing in the best policies that can back you up financially. There are certain points to follow in order for you to assess and compare the reliability and performance of the insurance company.

When you are bombarded with a variety of benefit options, business insurance promises, and lifetime pension opportunities, use these features to eliminate other companies that do not serve the best of your financial and professional interests.

Disability is a boon, especially to starting business owners and beginning employees. Your presence is virtually the most important factor in keeping the business running and making a living; and without good and qualified disability insurance, your chances of returning to work may be slim. Some features will be helpful in rating disability insurance companies, in order for you to choose only the best, in accordance to your needs and preferences, during periods of disability.

Most companies are primarily rated on their financial strength, which pertains to the funding that allows compensation to policyholders. Financial strength is the foundation of the policy, so you need to know how much funds are allocated for certain disability benefits and quote preferences. You would not want to keep paying for a premium if you know financial security is compromised or jeopardized because of the company's lack of funding.

Health insurance rating analysts are available to help you determine exactly the financial strength of your chosen insurance company. Analysts also have independent companies; and all you need to do is write a letter and pay a certain fee and the rating company will deliver an insurance rating system that depicts essential information about your disability insurance company, to help you know its strengths and weaknesses.

Policy benefits are also included in most insurance rating systems and these show you the current options you have with your existing disability insurance company and rate it against other companies, which, in turn, will leave you only with the best offers to avail of. Provisions governing the whole insurance policy are also indicated, which states updates and better options and preferences in benefits and waiting periods, tax exclusions and advantages, and many more.

There are guidelines on how to rate disability insurance companies, based on financial strengths, insurance benefits, policy specifications, and time periods. Some companies may claim to have scored high in every feature but, the truth is, you always get what you pay for in insurance.

You may have paid a lesser premium with more benefits without knowing. Benefit periods may have been prolonged or that benefits were made taxable, so make sure that you have checked every feature as you plan your disability quote.

Most top-rated disability insurance companies are excellent when it comes to financial strengths and provide immediate reimbursements. They rank high in their ability to pay under insurance policies and agreements.

Other special features are their excellent skills in handling senior policies, investment strategies, business ventures and operations, and underwriting commitments. Services should be very satisfactory and they all should simply have the resources to deal with the most severe economic conditions with less risks overall. These added features are determinant in guiding you in boosting your disability insurance company ratings.

David Wilkenson is a disability insurance specialist and contributes to WealthProtector.NET, a website that offers information on getting the best long term disability insurance quote.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Wilkenson

Disability Insurance For Fee For Service Professionals
By Steven Crawford

The Risks of A Long Term Disability

Let us first define what a "fee for service professional" truly is. There are thousands of possible occupations that could use this tag, the important part for this article is that you are clearly able to distinguish between a professional who generates income based upon his or her ability to perform a service, and somebody who is going to earn a salary for the year simply by being employed. People who have occupations that result in income only when he or she performs the duties of their occupation are considered fee for service professionals. Physicians only get paid after they have seen patients and treated them, lawyers get paid for working with clients on all sorts of legal matters, realtors get paid only when they sell a home, and consultants get paid for working with their clients. The systemic problem we have is that so many professionals don't realize just how vulnerable their financial worlds are. One long term disability could wipe out all of their savings in a short period of time, and most professionals don't realize that without them going to work their is no further source of income.

Some Professionals Understand

It is not entirely fair to say that all fee for service professionals don't understand how vulnerable they are. While some occupations seem to walk around with blinders on like consultants, salesman, and attorneys, physicians and nurses all understand just how vulnerable they are. There is a reason physicians buy disability insurance more than any other occupation, they see how people become disabled every day. While a computer consultant may think that if they can think and type that they can work, and physician knows that is just not true. Disabilities are most often illness claims, not accident claims. Many professions think of becoming disabled from a car accident or other accident, reality is that most claims come from illnesses like cancer, diabetes, back problems, heart disease, and hundreds of other diseases. Every professional needs to know that a disease does not care what you do for a living, and will most likely disable everybody in the same way, regardless of what you do for a living. I don't know any computer engineers that are still able to generate new business, and perform consulting services while dealing with something like ALS, Parkinsons, or cancer.

What to Look For as a Professional

There are a decent amount of quality disability insurance policies on the market today. Most of the good policies are Non-Cancellable and Guaranteed Renewable, and I believe you should also own a pure own-occupation definition of total disability. The real key, in my honest opinion, is the residual disability benefits offered to you. You need a disability insurance policy that has a very long recovery benefit, and most of the major carriers differ greatly when it comes to the recovery benefit. While many carriers have Non-Can benefits, and a few good one's also offer a pure own-occupation definition of total disability, there are only a couple that have a recovery benefit for the entire benefit period. Most disability insurance companies have to specify their recovery benefit period in the contract. Some will offer 6 months, some will go out to 2 years, but the best have a residual disability benefit that allows for an unlimited recovery benefit.

Ask Yourself One Question

If you were totally disabled for a period of one year, and one day you were miraculously recovered back to work full time, how long would it take you to achieve your pre-disability earnings level? Many fee for service professionals, when faced with this question, realize it would be a matter of rebuilding their entire business again. Clients and patients typically cannot wait for you to recover from your disability, and end up moving on to your competition while you are disabled. It may have taken you a decade to achieve the level of earnings you had before you were disabled, and it may be another decade before you get back to that level again. Many times you end up starting over when recovering from a long term disability, or even worse you may never financially recover. This is the exact reason why fee for service professionals need to have an individual disability insurance policy that has an unlimited recovery benefit. An unlimited recovery benefit will allow this person to receive monthly disability payments every month while they set back to rebuild their business.

Scary Thing About Some Policies

The scary thing about some disability insurance policies is that they require a loss of time or duties in order to pay any residual or partial disability benefits. Make absolutely sure that the disability insurance policy you end up purchasing does not require a loss of time or duties in order to pay a recovery benefit, or residual disability benefit. If the policy requires a loss of time or duties, when you are back to work full time the disability benefit would be over. As we just reviewed, it may be years until you financially recover, so make sure to buy a disability insurance policy that will pay you until you financially recover with an unlimited recovery benefit, not just until you physically recovery.

Steve Crawford is the President of Guardian Disability Insurance Brokerage, a firm specializing in the sale of individual disability insurance to professionals across the United States. They are the largest disability insurance presence on the internet, and have been in business since 1997 selling disability insurance on-line.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Crawford

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All About Business Disability Insurance

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Update Oct.. 13 ,2009 All About Business Disability Insurance By Insurance Experts

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